AIAD - Federazione Aziende Italiane per L'Aereospazio, la Difesa e la Sicurezza

CIRA’s new scientific and technological offer will involve important developments in the field of sustainable and safe air transport, advanced air mobility, innovative propulsion systems, access to and exploration of space, environmental monitoring.

CIRA technology developments follow few main research streams, mainly:

• AERONAUTICS

  The aviation sector is undergoing a period of deep transformation, driven by the increasingly extensive use of digital and energy technologies that enable both the modernization of traditional flight systems and the development of new concepts for transporting people and goods with zero environmental impact and high safety standards. Alongside the development of medium- and long-range transport aircraft powered by fully electric or hybrid propulsion, the new paradigms of Advanced Air Mobility offer innovative, integrated, multimodal transport and air traffic management solutions capable of improving accessibility and mobility in cities, metropolitan areas, and wider territories (UAM within Mobility as a Service models), as well as enhancing environmental quality, quality of life, and citizen safety.

  Leveraging PRORA and participation in national and European programs (Horizon 2020, Horizon Europe) focused on green air transport (Clean Sky, Clean Aviation, EDF) and air mobility (SESAR, EDF), CIRA has already acquired significant knowledge and results across various enabling technologies. The developments proposed in the PRORA DM662 update will provide in the coming years an even more substantial capability in terms of technologies, design and simulation tools, and test facilities, strengthening the competitive positioning of the national ecosystem (research, industry, authorities) at the European and international levels.

  The area encompasses two thematic domains:

  Green Transport Aircraft, focused on developing innovative configurations and technologies for zero-emission aircraft, which, depending on the aircraft size, translate into electric, hybrid, and thermal architectures.

  Advanced Air Mobility, focused on developing new paradigms, operational concepts, digital twin tools, technologies, and demonstrators to support the realization of an intermodal, safe, and resilient air transport system centered on the needs of passengers and cargo transport.

• SPACEThis area aims to develop digital twin systems, technologies, and demonstrators for the most advanced and innovative space transportation systems: space access and reentry vehicles, trans-atmospheric hypersonic vehicles, satellite platforms, and systems for interplanetary space exploration. The objective is to strengthen CIRA’s role within the international aerospace research landscape, supporting and working in synergy with the national industry, while also creating scientific platforms that can be jointly utilized with the national scientific community.

  The area is organized into three thematic domains, encompassing all projects funded under PRORA DM662, European programs (ESA, European Commission), and national initiatives (ASI, MUR, PON, PNRM):

  New Space Transportation Systems, focused on developing digital twin tools, technologies, and systems for: access-to-space systems such as launchers, including reusable ones, mini-launchers, and air-launched systems equipped with liquid LOx-CH4 or hybrid propulsion; orbital maneuvering systems based on electric or green propulsion; reentry systems with reusable winged and non-winged configurations, including entry, descent, and landing systems using deployable or inflatable thermal protection systems for Earth or other planetary bodies.

  Hypersonic Vehicles, focused on developing digital twin tools, technologies, and systems for hypersonic vehicles, both propelled (using ramjet/scramjet propulsion) and unpropelled (gliders), to be tested in flight conditions at stratospheric altitudes reached via expendable launchers or multistage air-launch systems, with potential dual-use applicability.

  Space Exploration, focused on developing digital twin tools, technologies, and systems for: satellite systems (particularly microsatellites); interplanetary exploration systems; systems for transporting scientific and technological payloads from ISS/Moon to Earth orbit; systems for human and robotic exploration and survival in hostile environments (innovative materials, extraterrestrial habitats, virtual reality, etc.); and systems for in-situ resource utilization (ISRU).

EARTH OBSERVATION

Earth Observation plays a fundamental role today in environmental protection, monitoring atmospheric phenomena, safeguarding the environment from natural disasters, territorial management, and ensuring the security of land, infrastructure, and citizens.

Moreover, the development of new and diverse observation systems (new satellites and satellite constellations, new satellite navigation and telecommunications systems, manned and unmanned mobile platforms, aircraft, and in-situ sensing systems) requires the necessary technological advancements to enable their effective integration. Within this domain, two thematic areas are defined, both to be implemented in close synergy with the relevant national scientific community:

Stratospheric Platform, focused on developing digital twin tools, technologies, and systems for the realization of stratospheric platform demonstrators. The scope also includes the development of innovative Earth-observation techniques based on proximity observation and persistent monitoring concepts.

Environmental Analysis and Monitoring Systems, focused on developing technologies and methods for environmental monitoring and analysis that process and integrate data originating from multiple sources.

• INFRASTRUCTURES

Research and experimental infrastructures, both physical and digital, play an essential role in the acquisition of knowledge and in the technological development of the aerospace sector, as well as in the implementation of the innovations that will be required to address the challenges of the near future.

From a modern perspective, also supported by digital innovation, the development of engineering knowledge and experimental capabilities is becoming increasingly integrated. It is precisely with this vision that CIRA intends to manage and implement strategic research infrastructures in the near future, thereby strengthening its role within the innovation ecosystem in support of research and industry. It is essential that CIRA, in its institutional role, is able to respond effectively to experimental needs which, as in the major international contexts, represent strategic assets for the growth and competitiveness of the sector.

Environmental objectives, facilities for the development of next-generation aircraft with advanced electric propulsion systems, automated production of components made of advanced materials, confined spaces for the testing of urban mobility systems, flight testing for efficient air traffic management, space simulation environments, wind tunnels to enhance flight safety, and computing capabilities integrated into a national distributed supercomputing system are among the main challenges that CIRA will address in the near future through the following areas of activity:

Space Experimentation, focused on the development of facilities and diagnostic capabilities for the testing and qualification of systems and components of space vehicles (thermal protection systems, propulsion systems, electronic components) under operational environmental conditions.

Aeronautical Experimentation, focused on the development of facilities and diagnostic capabilities for the testing of aerodynamic configurations in subsonic, transonic, and low-supersonic flow regimes, as well as protection or anti-icing systems.

Prototyping and Integration, focused on the electronic and mechanical design of electronic and mechanical devices, and on the integration of prototypes and experimental setups that constitute demonstrators of larger size and/or greater complexity.

Supercomputing, focused on the development of the Supercomputing Center and on the optimization of CIRA’s computing capabilities for aerodynamic, aero-thermodynamic, structural, and multiphysics simulations in support of aeronautical and space research.

CIRA takes part in the main European and international research programs, collaborates with aeronautical and space organizations and industries all over the world, joins the most important worldwide associations.